I’m a 90’s baby so it’s basically a given that Disney movies were a major key to my upbringing. Pocahontas, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast and Mulan were my faves. Looking back, certain aspects of these movies were definitely problematic. It seems Disney is out to make their past wrongs right with the release of the new animated film Zootopia. The children’s film is packed with underlying social messages about stereotypes, biases, marginalized minorities and why it's never OK to touch a Black woman's hair. (Seriously!)

The plot of Zootopia is simple enough: an optimistic rookie cop from the country is determined to prove herself in the big city. The rookie in question is actually a bunny named Judy Hopps (Ginnifer Goodwin) and the world in which Zootopia takes place looks fairly similar to 2016 America, fancy smartphones included.

Zootopia opens with a play put on by a young Judy. She explains the evolution of animals and how civilized and peaceful they have become. She idealizes Zootopia, a nearby metropolis filled with all kinds of mammals, living in harmony. Judy also shares her aspirations to be the city's first bunny cop when she grows up. Her parents are small town folks and encourage her to follow the traditional path of bunnies and become a carrot farmer. She is even bullied by a fox who mocks her dreams. Still, Judy never waivers in her goal to become a police officer.

Resilient and ever optimistic, Judy grows up and takes advantage of the "Mammal Outreach" program. Despite her small stature and her assumed physical limitations, Judy graduates from the police academy at the top of her class. As a traditionally preyed-upon animal, Judy is the minority in a field dominated by predators. Although she comes to work fully prepared to make a difference, she is given the lackluster position of a meter maid. By the end of her first day, it’s clear that her role on the force is a mere show of inclusion and not an actual effort to fully utilize her talents.

Judy seems especially enlightened when it comes to social justice and is quick to call out others for their faux pas. Her parents warn her about foxes and her father even encourages her to carry a fox repellent. Judy counter argues their sentiment when she points out that not all foxes are jerks and that she’s meant plenty of bunnies who are. When an animal calls her "cute", Judy gently tells him that "cute" is only a term other bunnies can call each other. And when another animal touches a sheep’s fluffy 'do, Judy reprimands him. "You can't just touch a sheep's wool!"

Disney

Zooptia is not the animal utopia Judy had always imagined it to be. There is a clear divide between the predators and the preys, which becomes all the more evident when Judy meets Nick Wilde (Jason Bateman), a fox. Nick is denied service in an ice cream shop run by elephants. The owner asks Nick if he doesn’t have ice cream shops on “his side of town” then straight up tells him to get lost! Judy calls the owner out for his prejudice and convinces him to sell ice cream to Nick.

Despite the rising tension between the predators and the preys, it is difficult to distinguish the victims from the oppressors. Just when you think you’ve figured out the social dynamics of Zootopia, everything shifts. Although Judy has good intentions, her own biases get in the way of her attempts to make the community better. After meeting Nick, she attempts to compliment him by telling him how “articulate” he is. (Major side-eye.) When Judy solves a big case and has to make a public statement, she further spreads harmful sterotypes about a group of animals. Her statements cause citywide panic and further division among the mammals, complete with protests! Things got really deep when Judy gives up her position on the police force for fear that she has not done her job of serving and protecting.

The most emotional part of Zootopia is when Nick shares his memory of wanting to be in a Scouts group as a child. When he goes to what he believes to be the initiation, he is a teased by a group of animals who laugh at the thought of a fox joining their group. They instead place a muzzle over his face and he runs out of the building in tears. At that moment, a small child in the movie theater shouted out, “Why?”

It served as my comic relief but also made me wonder... Millions of people have already seen Zootopia and its safe to say that millions who have yet to see it, eventually will. While it’s the not the manifesto of racial equality, it's safe to say that Zootopia is a great starting point for a larger conversation among all ages.

"Los Angeles is a beautifully wrapped lie," an Armenian woman tells her driver, as they traverse the streets of West Hollywood in search of her son-in-law.

It's Christmas Eve and the main characters of Tangerine have broken into a motel brothel, destroyed family ties and barely avoided jail-time, all in a span of twenty-four hours. This indie film, famously shot on an iPhone 5S is an unconventional Christmas tale about friendship, loyalty and secrets.

Tangerine follows two transgender sex workers and one of their johns. The filmis fiction but comes across as a documentary. Fast-paced cinematography and well placed street jargon bring an element of authenticity to the film.

Magnolia Pictures

The story begins when Sin-Dee, fresh out of jail, learns that her pimp boyfriend Chester has been seen on the block with a White "fish" (slang for a cisgender female). On a mission, Sin-Dee drags her best friend Alexandra along as she scours the streets of Los Angeles searching for the woman who's stolen her man. While both women are prostitutes, it becomes evident that Alexandra yearns for more while Sin-Dee is still deeply rooted in the game.

"It's too much drama," Alexandra insists shortly before parting ways with Sin-Dee. Ironically, Alexandra's day has some theatrics of its own. She tussles with a john over a "business transaction" gone wrong, spouting, "You forget I got a dick too!"

While transgender identity is not fully explored, sexual anatomy plays a part in the film. In the opening scene of Tangerine Alexandra despises the fact that her estrogen pills have given her breasts while her muscular arms have remained. Both Alexandra and Sin-Dee want to be viewed as "the real thing."

Alexandra laments, "The world can be a cruel place."

"Yeah, it is cruel. God gave me a penis," Sin-Dee retorts.

Armenian driver and frequent customer of both Sin-Dee and Alexandra, Razmik is disgusted when he realizes that a prostitute he picks up is a biological female.

Still, Alexandra has a reserved sophistication that easily makes her the most compelling and sympathetic character in Tangerine. After spending her day passing out flyers, urging people to attend an event she's holding later that night, Alexandra sings to a single digit bunch in a dingy club. While Sin-Dee manages to make it (and comically brings along her "hostage" Dinah), no one else who promised to show up is in attendance. Alexandra wistfully sings along to Toyland, a hauntingly hypnotic ode to childhood and fleeting innocence. Sadder still, the camera catches Alexandra slip the club owner money as she leaves.

The abrupt ending of the film, delivers a cold helping of truth to three characters who are far too occupied with delusions. This ain't a Hollywood ending, ya'll.

As raw as it is heartfelt, Amy the documentary tells the story of the late singer/songwriter Amy Winehouse. Best known for her 2006 crossover hit Rehab, Amy’s music exposed the ugly truths of addiction, in all its forms. The documentary's director Asif Kapadia goes beyond the media circus surrounding the late pop star to reveal the life of an English girl with soul.

Addiction

Although Amy showed other aspects to her life, Kapadia did not shy away from Winehouse’s vices. As the documentary plays out, the viewer sees Amy transition from a lively, healthy looking girl to an emaciated shell of her former self within the span of a few years. The film follows her tumultuous relationship with her ex-husband Blake Fielder-Civil who many cite as the catalyst of her downfall. Aside from introducing her to hard drugs, Fielder-Civil struggled with self-mutilation. An already damaged Amy began to mimic his self-destructive habits. Amy’s obsessive tendencies didn’t end there. She struggled with bulimia throughout her early teens until her death.

The Fame Monster

Even if you weren’t all that familiar with her music, chances are you’ve seen at least one of the countless tabloid images of Amy Winehouse drunk and disheveled on a city sidewalk. Amy reveals that even other celebrities joined in mocking the troubled songstress. Everyone from Jay Leno to George Lopez made cringe-worthy jokes about Winehouse. Still, the most distressing part of Amy’s fame was the way it changed the people in her inner-circle. When Amy Winehouse attempted sobriety and escaped the flashing lights of paparazzi, her father Mitchell Winehouse brought the media to her front door. The film features footage of a visibly annoyed and disappointed Winehouse, scolding her father for having a camera crew in tow. Those closest to her, who should have had her best interest at heart, were part of the reason why she failed to improve.

Her Musical Genius

Winehouse’s over-the-top persona too often distracted from the beauty of her artistry as a vocalist and writer. Amy brings music to the forefront, with footage of early live performances and studio sessions. Song lyrics dance across the screen as Winehouse sings her woes during intimate shows.

We discover that Winehouse was a jazz nerd who played guitar, planned to eventually collaborate with rapper Mos Def and Roots drummer ?uestlove and geeked out over Tony Bennett. Perhaps the greatest revelation (albeit not surprising) is the origin of Rehab. Winehouse’s biggest commercial success was a quite literal diss towards her former manager who staged a failed intervention. Towards the film’s end, Winehouse’s frustration with performing old material was emphasized. By 2011, she was tired of performing Rehab and was ready to create new music. Viewers are left with a deep longing for what musical greatness Winehouse would have concocted if her demons had not gotten the best of her.

After watching Amy you'll want to have a jam session of your own in her honor. Here are my top picks, in no particular order:

Hello, my name is Maya...

and I'm what some would call a "Bad Feminist." I minored in Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies so I'm well versed in the male gaze, rape culture and intersectionality. However, that doesn't mean I won't partake in the rachetrosity that is trap music or revel in the ridiculousness of a Real Housewives marathon.